Diabetic Assistance Dog Programme Criteria
Hypo Hounds is predominantly a paediatric* charity assisting Type 1 Diabetic children who have no hypo awareness ie. their bloods fall below 3 without symptoms.
*We do occasionally assist adults, however, priority will always go to those with the greatest clinical need.
Clients must be 1 year from diagnosis.
This to ensure that you have adjusted into living with Type 1 Diabetes and have obtained all the support necessary from your Diabetes Team, as well as moving from DMI (Daily Manual Injections) to a pump.
If you are newly diagnosed we recognise that this is a frightening time for you and your family – Please speak with your DSN (Diabetes Specialist Nurse) who will be able to point you in the direction of local support groups and also NHS courses.
We do support clients who have access to a CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor). We have found that our dogs are currently beating the CGM by approximately 15 minutes, by working together with technology, it brings a wealth of health benefits for all.
Priority will always go to clients with the greatest clinical need, this is monitored on how many emergency hospital admissions you have had over the last year.
Sadly at this time, we do not cover any other health conditions.
We do not train pet dogs or offer training advice to enable you to train your pet dog.
To be considered as an applicant for a fully trained Hypo Hound you must:
- reside within a 2 hour drive of our training centre and be able to commit to weekly training sessions which may require an overnight stay (at your expense).
- have little to no hypo/hyper awareness during the day and be compliant with your Diabetic Care, testing your bloods a minimum of 6 times a day.
- in the case of teenage clients, it is crucial that they are fully committed to the program for the life of the dog. This can be particularly challenging for those going through major life changes such as work and university.
- have a secure garden and be able to provide a stable loving home.
- Someone at home for the majority of the day
- Hypo Hounds have a strict NO SMOKING policy (inc vaping) and will not place a dog in a household where smokers reside.
- No other dogs in the household.
** Please note Hypo Hounds will remain the owner of this dog, however, you will be responsible for food, insurance and vet fee’s and a placement fee of £50**
Our Trainers
Hypo Hounds trainers are some of the UK’s leading Home Office approved scent trainers.
They have all had extensive experience of dog scent training at the highest level and are all enhanced DBS-checked.
Having worked dogs all our trainers understand the unique bond between human and dog.
They fully understand what it is like to depend on a dog for your safety.
Hypo Hounds has over 200 years of hands on scent detection training knowledge at its disposal.
What does the training involve?
Regardless of which service we provide, Assistance dog training takes hard work, commitment and requires extensive record keeping.
Owners will need to test their bloods more frequently since this is a vital part of their dogs’ training.
Hypo Hounds will require you to send in your blood glucose readings every 3 months to assist us with the training of your dog.
Where does the training take place?
All our training takes place during office hours of 10am – 4pm, Monday – Friday.
Assistance dog training is not a one size fits all package and every dog and Diabetic is different.
Training time scales, therefore, differ from client to client.
All training takes place at our bespoke training centre.
Clients will be expected to attend our training centre (or HUB) on a weekly basis.
Additional services:
Hypo Hounds are extremely proud to be offering mental health and well-being supportive clinics as well as respite care sessions for our clients.
These are held with our fully qualified (BACP) registered counselling team.
Hypo Hounds will also be offering mental health transitional clinics aimed at teenage clients to assist them with their independence and transition into adulthood.
There is an annual fee of £50.00 upon being accepted onto the Hypo Hounds program which goes towards admin and clerical fees.
Public Access rights for Hypo Hounds:
Additional information regarding Public Access rights can be found on the following external sites:
What do I do now?
| Trained Hypo Hound Program | APPLICATIONS OF INTEREST FOR 2024/25 ARE NOW OPEN |
| Puppy parents | We are recruiting puppy walkers and emergency, holiday cover parents NOW |
If you feel you fit our criteria please download, complete and send back the application form
Hypo Hounds Equal Opportunities Statement
Hypo Hounds does not discriminate applicants on the basis of race, colour, religion, creed, martial status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, physical or mental disabilities, and OR any other legally protected status.
“When I was contacted by Hypo hounds I instantly wanted to know more about the work that they are doing in the Type 1 Diabetic community. I was surprised that such a small charity still in its infancy is doing such ground-breaking and life-saving work using man’s best friend. As a Type 1 Diabetic myself I totally understand the daily struggles with blood testing and insulin injections and I have fairly good awareness of when my blood sugars rise or fall.
I was, however, shocked when I met the Hypo Hounds team and young Scooby who is partnered with Sophie did an amazing alert to my blood sugars being over what he was trained to detect. This for me was amazing as even I didn’t know what was happening but he did. I am honoured to become an ambassador for Hypo Hounds and hope to help them raise awareness and also much-needed funds”.
Dominic Littlewood
Ambassador
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